1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electrical cable and to a method and a device for the manufacture of an electrical cable.
2. Description of the Related Art
An electrical cable of this kind includes an inner conductor arrangement, having one or more longitudinally extending electrical conductors as well as an (insulating) outer sheath, which surrounds the inner conductor arrangement, and an electrical shield of the cable. The electrical shield surrounds the conductor arrangement annularly in cross-section and, viewed in the radial direction—that is, at right angles to the direction in which the inner conductor arrangement extends—extends between the inner conductor arrangement and the outer sheath of the cable. The individual electrical lines of the inner conductor arrangement are advantageously each provided with an electrically insulating jacket, in order to avoid an electrical contact between the individual conductors of the inner conductor arrangement and with the electrical shield of the cable.
In such shielded electrical cables, it is known for the electrical shield to be turned inside out or everted onto an end portion of the cable, on which an electric plug connector is to be provided, for instance, in such a way that an outer portion of the shield extends on the exterior (remote from the inner conductor arrangement) of the outer sheath of the cable, so that in the radial direction it is spaced apart from the main area of the electrical shield extending between the inner conductor arrangement and the outer sheath. The outer sheath of the cable, in the end portion where the electrical shield of the cable is turned inside out, can have a support sleeve, along which part of the inside-out portion of the shield extends. The support sleeve is adjoined in the axial direction, that is, the direction in which the conductor arrangement extends, by a conventional insulating jacket, comprising a soft elastic or flexible material, of the outer sheath of the cable.
For fixing the arrangement on that end portion of the outer sheath of the cable on which the inside-out portion of the electrical shield of the cable extends, a fixation sleeve can be applied, for instance in the form of a crimped sleeve. The fixation sleeve surrounds the outer portion of the electrical shield and holds onto the exterior of the sheath of the cable. An electrical cable of this kind is described for instance in European Patent Disclosure EP 0 694 989 A2.
If the electrical shield of the cable includes a mesh of many individual stranded wires, an undefined setup of individual stranded wires of the shield can occur after the portion of the electrical shield has been turned inside out, so that this portion extends as an outer area of the shield on the exterior (outer surface) of the outer sheath of the cable. The undefined setup makes further processing steps, such as applying an outer fixation sleeve, more difficult and as a consequence can lead to a poor appearance or functional problems. Moreover, from the aspect of workplace safety, there is a risk of injury at stranded wires that are set up in an undefined way in a mesh shield.